Farmington

Farmington is a city in San Juan County, New Mexico. In 1874, after the Apache refused to move into the half of San Juan County which was still unoccupied (following the Navajo's relocation to the western half), the US government opened the area for settlement, and settlers from southern Colorado moved into the region and called in "Junction City" due to its access to the San Juan, Animas, and La Plata Rivers. In 1901, the town was incorporated and named Farmington with a population of 548 people, and the opening of a railroad to Colorado in 1905 led to economic and population growth. The city continued to grow due to the construction of a natural gas pipeline, and it became a Republican stronghold along with other newly developed areas in the Northwest mesa. In 2016, Farmington had a population of 41,629 people.